Workplace Safety Awareness Council Blog

Earlier this year I was conducting training in Dubai and what I remember as I got off the plane and waited for my taxi was the intense heat - at midnight! I'm from Florida and quite used to hot weather but this was different, Dubai after all is a little slice of concrete paradise carved into the desert and the temps reach 120 degrees without a blink.

Because of these unbearable temperatures, Dubai passed laws that outside work may not be performed between 11:00am and 2:00pm. This was to serve as a protection from the heat. Not a bad idea, but what about your business. Shutting down work may be a bit extreme, so what other precautions can you take - and how does OSHA view your responsibility to protect workers from heat?

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First - what are symptoms of of a heat exposure problem?
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Symptoms of Heat Exhaustion

* Headaches, dizziness, lightheadedness or fainting.
* Weakness and moist skin.
* Mood changes such as irritability or confusion.
* Upset stomach or vomiting.

Symptoms of Heat Stroke

* Dry, hot skin with no sweating.
* Mental confusion or losing consciousness.
* Seizures or convulsions.

Preventing Heat Stress

* Know signs/symptoms of heat-related illnesses; monitor yourself and coworkers.
* Block out direct sun or other heat sources.
* Use cooling fans/air-conditioning; rest regularly.
* Drink lots of water; about 1 cup every 15 minutes.
* Wear lightweight, light colored, loose-fitting clothes.
* Avoid alcohol, caffeinated drinks, or heavy meals.

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Next - what could you do to protect workers?
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Using the recommended process of Engineering Controls, then Work Practices (Administrative Controls) and then PPE, here are a few ideas:

1. A variety of engineering controls including general ventilation and spot cooling by local exhaust ventilation at points of high heat production may be helpful. Shielding is required as protection from radiant heat sources. Evaporative cooling and mechanical refrigeration are other ways to reduce heat. Cooling fans can also reduce heat in hot conditions. Eliminating steam leaks will also help. Equipment modifications, the use of power tools to reduce manual labor and personal cooling devices or protective clothing are other ways to reduce the hazards of heat exposure for workers.

2. Work practices such as providing plenty of drinking water -- as much as a quart per worker per hour -- at the workplace can help reduce the risk of heat disorders. Training first aid workers to recognize and treat heat stress disorders and making the names of trained staff known to all workers is essential. Employers should also consider an individual worker's physical condition when determining his or her fitness for working in hot environments. Older workers, obese workers and personnel on some types of medication are at greater risk.

3. Alternating work and rest periods with longer rest periods in a cool area can help workers avoid heat stress. If possible, heavy work should be scheduled during the cooler parts of the day and appropriate protective clothing provided. Supervisors should be trained to detect early signs of heat stress and should permit workers to interrupt their work if they are extremely uncomfortable.

4. Acclimatization to the heat through short exposures followed by longer periods of work in the hot environment can reduce heat stress. New employees and workers returning from an absence of two weeks or more should have 5-day period of acclimatization. This period should begin with 50 percent of the normal workload and time exposure the first day and gradually building up to 100 percent on the fifth day.

5. Employee education is vital so that workers are aware of the need to replace fluids and salt lost through sweat and can recognize dehydration, exhaustion, fainting, heat cramps, salt deficiency, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke as heat disorders. Workers should also be informed of the importance of daily weighing before and after work to avoid dehydration.

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OK, but does OSHA require you to protect workers from heat and sun exposure?
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An April 16, 1998 Interpretation Letter from OSHA says that worker exposure to the sun's radiation is discussed indirectly under 29 Code of Federal Regulations 1910.132(a) pertaining to personal protective equipment. Employers are to use effective forms of protection such as wide-brim hats and long sleeve clothing. In situations where the only effective means of protection is sun screen, then it too may be used.

If OSHA can prove over exposure to the sun and an employer did not move to protect the worker, a general duty clause citation may be issued.

For further information, OSHA has provided some great information in the OSHA Technical Manual: http://osha.gov/dts/osta/otm/otm_iii/otm_iii_4.html

Another great idea is to print out the Heat Stress Quick cards and provide them to all employees as a reminder of precautions they can take
OSHA Quick Card http://osha.gov/Publications/osha3154.pdf

Give these ideas some serious thought and see if your company can implement these ideas.

Its a brutal summer out there, but remember - winter is right around the corner and then we'll discuss freezing temperatures!

Labels: 10 Hour OSHA Card, dubai, heat exhaustion, heat stress, heat stroke, Safety, sun block

In the past I've quoted or mentioned my good friend Joel Leonard over at SkillTV (www.SkillTV.net). He's known in certain circles as the "Maintenance Evangelist" and he really does get out there and "preach the good word" about maintenance and reliability.

Well Joel has created a new article entitled: The Ten Commandments for Todays Reliability Pros, and since we have so many plant maintenance folks onboard and maintenance and reliability have a direct impact of a safe workplace, I'd thought I'd share his article in ten commandments style! Good stuff Mr. Leonard - good stuff indeed. . .


With the rash of recent headline disasters traced back to maintenance and operational functions, don’t we need to elevate our reliability performance standards? From rail track sensors sending faulty signals in DC causing two trains to collide, killing and injuring several passengers; to an explosion at a meat processing plant traced to contractors venting natural gas, killing 3 and injuring dozens; and even an ammonia leak burning a workers lungs inside out at a chicken processing plant, shouldn’t we respond?

As companies are cutting corners to save money short-term, as we transition to new workers while baby boomer generation retires, and as we implement more and more sophisticated equipment, our challenges are steep and perhaps are at biblical proportions.

These results are purposely not etched in stone to provide flexibility to adjust to the continual changes in advanced technology and new strategies. However these should serve as a guide to help current and future reliability pros garner more support and understanding from executive and operational leaders.

• Thou shalt make Maintenance & Reliability a profit contributor for the collective good of the entire company.
• Thou shalt know the critical equipment whose products delight customers while keeping the land, air and water clean and pure.
• Thou shalt schedule moments of rest and repair for the critical equipment.
• Thou shalt maintain the critical equipment to appease the spirits of Quality and Operations.
• Thou shall not falsely worship reactive maintenance or implement fix it when it breaks mentalities.
• Thou shall not covet maintenance that serves no useful purpose.
• Thou shall not steal uptime away from production in times of upheaval and crisis.
• Thou shall not take the life of equipment with poor practices.
• Thou shall not place false equipment history in the asset bible (CMMS).
• Thou shallt convince top execs that reliability and maintenance is to be supported not just managed.
• Thou shalt not wait until tomorrow to document your work, for it shall never get done
• Thou shalt not assume anything when investigating a failure, lest you overlook important details
• Thou shalt not allow emotions to determine the focus of your work, instead sort by criticality
• Thou shall not allow anyone to misuse the good name of Maintenance in vain and blame it for the shortcomings of the organization as a whole. Respect maintenance, it is critical to the success of any organization and should not be seen as just an overhead or cost center.
• The stores are a holy sanctity, thou shall respect them and keep them full, use suppliers to consign the stock where possible to reduce cost and Develop relationships with key suppliers, treat them as your partners.
• Thou shall respect thy skilled tradesmen, do not allow your trades to die, train well the young and develop the old in modern techniques.
• Thou shall not covet another’s processes, take time to review and benchmark then adopt the best bits. Remember the basics, sometimes good people and good tools are all you really need.

Oh, you may have noticed that there are actually 18 listed above. The responses were so good that could not shrink to ten. And after-all, since I don’t have to lug huge stone carved tablets down a mountain, why not have more?

Your success largely is dependent on your ability to create solutions, manage performance and develop miracles to achieve profits in a down economy, meanwhile keeping your business environment safe. Since you have god-like responsibilities, you choose which commandments to follow. Now it is your turn to add, change or delete to advance your organization.

P.S. If you like the article, give Joel a shout at Joel@SkillTV.net - tell him we sent you!

Labels: Joel Leonard, Maintenance, reliability, Safety, www.SkillTV.net

Do you have a first aid kit at the workplace? OSHA requires it per 29 CFR 1910.151(B) "Adequate first aid supplies shall be readily available."

The question then becomes, "what is considered adequate"? Well strangely enough there once was a time when an employer had to have a licensed medical professional prescribe the proper contents for the first aid kit!

Don't remember ever doing that did you (we didn't either). OSHA then became wiser and changed the wording as we see above. Of course that wording just complicated things so they clarified rather nicely the required first aid kit contents in Appendix "A" of 29 CFR 1910.151 where it states:

An example of the minimal contents of a generic first aid kit is described in American National Standard (ANSI) Z308.1-1998 "Minimum Requirements for Workplace First-aid Kits." The contents of the kit listed in the ANSI standard should be adequate for small worksites. When larger operations or multiple operations are being conducted at the same location, employers should determine the need for additional first aid kits at the worksite, additional types of first aid equipment and supplies and additional quantities and types of supplies and equipment in the first aid kits.

Well now Z308.1-2009, American National Standard -- Minimum Requirements for Workplace First Aid Kits and Supplies, has received ANSI approval and becomes effective. There are some changes to the contents, new types of first aid kits and a required supply list to include a first aid guide.

Should you start buying new first aid kits that now match the newly revised ANSI standard?

Although perhaps a good idea to match the current standard, OSHA has only adopted the requirement to meet the 1998 version of ANSI Z308.1 standard. As long as your kits at least meet that standard, you should be good to go, if you are a typical small workplace.

OSHA still requires that the employer evaluate the workplace, the workers, the task performed, the employee count, types of injuries possible etc and then make a decision on the first aid kits and their requirements.

How best can this be done? By conducting a Job Hazard Analysis (JHA).

You do know how to conduct a JHA right?

If not, come back to this blog and we'll talk about the JHA. . .

Labels: ANSI Z308.1, First Aid Kit, JHA, job hazard analysis, OSHA, Safety

I just arrived back from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida and had a great time. Looks like NASA is going to retire the space shuttle and transition into a new breed of craft, so i figured now would be a great time to see a final liftoff.

One of the concerns for this flight is the space junk floating around near the Hubble telescope where the shuttle is going for repairs.

I found it interesting that NASA has calculated the risk for a catastrophic collision with junk during the mission at 1 in 229. A typical shuttle mission is calculated at a 1 in 300 risk and it appears their threshold for tolerance is 1 in 200.

The crew spent Tuesday checking the outside of the shuttle for any damage from debris during launch, finding four nicks that initially seem minor, but there is some concern. We all remember what happened when Space Shuttle Columbia got hit by a piece of foam during launch and later disintegrated during re-entry.

But the biggest danger on any shuttle flight is getting hit with space junk or tiny space rocks at high speeds during orbit, not during launch. Because objects circle the Earth at high speed, something as small as one-third the width of a dime can penetrate the shuttle's cabin, causing a major—maybe even fatal—problem, according to NASA.

Of course NASA has prepared for this contingency and they even have a backup space shuttle on the launching pad right now ready to rescue the crew should additional damage occur.

So this brings up a great question, whats your contingency plan for workplace emergencies? Hopefully you've conducted your hazard analysis. You've used a hierarchy of control to eliminate or at least reduce the hazards in the workplace. Sometimes things happen. operator error, equipment malfunction, so called acts-of-god. If this happens, do you have a backup plan?

You should and we encourage you to start reviewing or developing those plans this month. Of course should you need assistance, we're here to help. next month we'll talk about contingency plans, so be looking for our e-newsletter. . .

Labels: Contingency Plan, NASA, Safety, Space Shuttle

URGENT: Readers of this blog are invited to a very special free webcast on swine flu and how to keep your employees safe!

The Swine Flu epidemic has spread throughout North America and now threatens to mutate into an even more aggressive influenza. How will you prepare? How will your business be affected?

Have you developed a business continuity plan that addresses influenza epidemics? What proactive steps can you take to protect your employees and your business?

In this 90 minute webcast you'll learn:

:: Proactive steps you can take to protect employees
:: "Urban Myths" related to swine flu and how to determine what’s accurate
:: Key components of an emergency response plan (we'll include a plan template you can download)
:: Resources provided by local, state and federal health agencies
:: How to approach cleaning and maintenance protocols before, during and after an outbreak
:: Security and travel related issues
:: Effective communication with employees, suppliers, clients and contractors.

This timely webcast also includes a question and answer session which allows you to get answers to your most pressing influenza issues.

Title: The Swine Flu Pandemic: Urban Myths and Real Solutions for Preparing Your Business

Date: Thursday, May 14, 2009

Time: 2:00 PM - 3:15 PM EDT

Space is limited. Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/298571818

P.S. After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

P.P.S. Sign up for this webcast and you'll be able to download the webcast in its entirety.
Listen when you'd like as many times as you'd like!

Labels: business contuinity, Free OSHA Training, influenza, Safety, swine flu, webcast

We just finished up a great OSHA Bootcamp in Oklahoma City last week. Our thanks go out to the wonderful participants who joined us for two-days. Those who attended came away with a true gameplan for compliance. Each received a copy of the OSHA Navigator PRO software and are well on their way to a safer workplace.

What makes the OSHA Bootcamp unique, is the small number of participants we allow to attend. We find that when our Bootcamps are kept small (12 or fewer attendees) the participants get more from the training event, and that’s our goal.

One problem though. . .

Although we have ten Bootcamps scheduled this year, each are sold out and we can't take on additional registrations. We may be offering additional Bootcamps later this year (after the Fall) but right now the only way you can experience the OSHA Bootcamp is to bring it onsite.

We don't charge per person. Our fee is all inclusive (meaning we pay for all travel arrangements etc) and it’s a very effective way to get your staff trained and OSHA compliant. Many of our clients have found that the savings achieved from conducting an OSHA Bootcamp onsite more than covers the cost of the training!

To find out more about the OSHA Bootcamp and how to bring it onsite visit:
http://www.wpsac.org/bootcamp.html

Labels: 10 Hour OSHA Card, OSHA Bootcamp, OSHA Training, Safety

Good friend and Maintenance Evangelist Joel Leonard talks with Fred Echols, host of All Things Considered/Weekend Virginia on WVTF and Radio IQ in Roanoke/Charlottesville, Va., about using an infrared camera to measure the heat that radiates from the foreheads of contestants who eat hot sauce.
For details follow the link: http://www.myfox8.com/news/morningnews/

For those of you who know of Joel's work, you'll also know of his now world famous maintenance crisis song, which you can catch on the plantservices.com site. For more information about the contest, see The Hothead Contest blog and The Asheboro Chili Cookoff blog.

Labels: Joel Leonard, Maintenance, OSHA, OSHA Compliance, Safety, SkillTV

Well today is April 1st and unless you've been hiding under a rock you've probably been hit with some sort of "April Fools Story". It happens every year, we read a story and believe its true until we remember - "Oh wait - you got me, its April Fools Day". Our twist on April Fools Day is a little different. . . .

We've just completed a video and we're calling it "Safety is no Joke". Its a great collection of "funny" safety pictures (and we're using the term "funny" very loosely). The best part is the video is synced to the dueling banjo music from the movie Deliverance! You can't want this video without smiling - I promise!


Be sure to sign up for our e-newsletter at the end and do us a huge favor and forward the link to a friend and help us get the word out - Safety is no Joke!

Labels: Compliance, OSHA, Safety, training video

Just arrived back from the TFM Forum at the Del Coronado in San Diego. What a great hotel and what a great event! We were able to meet in small focus groups and discuss safety one-on-one - what a great experience.

One issue that came up was the changes to OSHA that we can expect now that we have a new President in office. You've probably heard me say that when we have a Republican in office we typically don't see many changes to OSHA. Reason? The focus is on keeping the "business machine" churning and we don't want to add regulations that may negatively impact business.

When a Democrat is in office we typically see OSHA get more funding and more regulations created. After all, the Democratic platform is "looking out for the little guy".

Recently President Obama put together a report on the upcoming budget and it had some very interesting things to say about the OSHA budget. You can read the report in its entirety(fy10-newera.pdf) but page 83 speaks about OSHA. In particular here is what the report says:

"For the past eight years, the Department’s labor law enforcement agencies have struggled with growing workloads and shrinking staff. The President’s Budget seeks to reverse this trend. The Budget will increase funding for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, enabling it to vigorously enforce workplace safety laws and ensure the safety and health of American workers"

Now understand that we're not taking a political stand here. I'm simply stating historical reality, so be warned, OSHA may be changing and you better be ready!

By the way, if the Hotel Del Coronado sounds familiar, there's been about a half dozen movies filmed there including "Some like it Hot" and "The Stuntman". Here is a picture at sunset:

Labels: OSHA Compliance, OSHA Training, Safety

Just arrived back from the NFM&T conference in Baltimore and we had a great group.
The general feeling we're getting out there is that safety managers are more interested in the return on investment of safety than ever before. And it makes great sense! A recent study by Liberty Mutual found that for every dollar spent on safety you can expect a $3 - $4 return on the $1 investment! That's pretty powerful stuff, in any economy.

Think it doesn't work? While working with a group of municipal power companies in Florida, one risk manager was able to reduce his company's workers comp and liability insurance costs from $1 million dollars to just above $375,000 in a three year period. That's not a one time savings of $625,000 - its an annual savings of $625,000 based on smart safety goals - $625,000 each and every year!

Imagine what a similar savings would do for your company. better yet, imagine what a similar savings would do for you personally. Think job security, a healthy raise, new doors opened, the ability upgrade your position and salary. Pretty good options, especially in this economy!

To find out how to achieve similar savings in your organization, click on this link for a recent webinar that we conducted. This webinar may just be the jump start you need to make some serious changes in your organization and career:

http://www.wpsac.org/webinarinquiry.php?webinar=webinar3

See you on the blog very soon!

Labels: Compliance, Liberty Mutual, OSHA, Safety, Workers Comp